Scrap block insertion apparatus

ABSTRACT

AN IMPROVED RECOVERABLE APPARATUS FOR INSERTION OF SCRAP BLOCKS INTO A FURNACE, SUCH AS AN ELECTRICAL STEEL MAKING FURNACE, WHEREIN REMOVABLE CONNECTING PINS ARE USED TO RELEASABLY SECURE THE ENDS OF THE BLOCK HOLDING CHAINS TOGETHER TO RETAIN THE BLOCK. AN AUXILIARY CHAIN IS COUPLED TO THE PINS FOR REMOVAL OF THE PINS TO RELEASE THE BLOCK IN THE FURNACE.

p 20, 1971 SABUROJI OZEKI ETAL" A 3,606,440

SCRAP BLOCK INSERTION APPARATUS Filed May 26, 1969 FIG.

United States Patent 0 06,440 SCRAP BLOCK INSERTION APPARATUS Saburoji Ozeki, Tokyo, and Soichi Shimasaki and Osamn Kadota, Yokohama-shi, Kanagawa-ken, Japan, assignors to Nippon Kokan Kabushiki Kaisha Filed May 26, 1969, Ser. No. 827,870

Int. Cl. B66c 1/12 US. Cl. 294-76 7 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE This invention relates to apparatus for the insertion of a scrap block into a furnace.

Previously, a scrap block bound in crosswise fashion with wire ropes around its outer surface was placed in a furnace by a lift. However, this prior method requires much labor in binding the wire ropes and fastening the ends thereof, thus increasing the work time in proportion to the weight of the scrap block. There is also a risk of the wire ropes slipping off, or that the scrap block might drop from between the wire ropes as they are bound in a crosswise fashion. Further, as the wire ropes can be recovered only with difiiculty, they thus become expendables. This prior method is therefore uneconomical.

It is an object of this invention to eliminate these existing defects of the prior art and to provide an improved block insertion apparatus.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The apparatus of the present invention comprises a plurality of main chains suspended from a preferably circular suspension member, which is hung from a main wire. The ends of the main chains are bound together by a plurality of bottom reception chains, the bottom reception chains being releasably bound together by connecting means including removable connecting pins, the connecting pins being connected to an auxiliary chain. The suspension member is lifted by a lift and the scrap block is placed into the electrical furnace. The connecting pin is removed by pulling the auxiliary chain, thereby releasing the bottom reception chains and releasing the scrap block. The insertion apparatus is recovered intact by lifting same out of the furnace and may be reused.

The above and other objects and features of the present invention will become more apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a side view of an embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 2 is a bottom view of the embodiment of FIG. 1 as seen along lines AA; and FIG. 3 is an exploded view of the section B of the embodiment of FIG.

The illustrated embodiment principally comprises an annular suspension member 1, a lifting wire rope 2, a plurality of main chains 3 suspended from the suspension member 1, a pin-removing chain rope 4 and a chainconnecting pin 5.

The annular suspension member 1 is hung by wire rope 2 which is connected to a main wire 6 by a connecting member 15. Main chains 3 are suspended from said Suspension member 1. The ends of the main chains 3 are connected to a bottom-reception chain 8 which is sectioned ice into four parts, these four parts being connected by a connecting member 9. The connecting member 9 comprises, as shown in FIG. 3, mating of male 12 and female 11 members having pierced-through pin holes 10, and a pin 5 which is removably inserted into the pin holes 10. The pin 5 is connected to the auxiliary chain 14 which is connected to an auxiliary wire 13 via a chain 4. Wire 13 is passed over a pulley 16 which is suspended from member 15. Wire 13 also passes under a pulley 17 which is fixed to annular suspension member 1.

In order to place a scrap block into a furnace employing the apparatus of the present invention, the apparatus is raised by a lift (not shown) and by main wire 6 over a scrap-block 7. The apparatus is then lowered over the scrap block and the bottom chain -8 and main chains 3 are coupled together by the connecting member 9, thus holding the scrap block 7 by the suspension member 1, the main chains 3 and the bottom-reception chain 8. The ap paratus is then raised and placed into the electrical furnace. When the apparatus is lifted, the auxiliary wire 13 is loosened. Since the scrap block 7 places tension in the direction of the arrows (FIG. 3) upon the bottom-reception chain 8, the pin 5 cannot slip out of the pin hole 10. As the apparatus is lowered, when the block 7 reaches the furnace bottom, the main wire -6 becomes loosened and the auxiliary wire 13 is wound up. Then the pin 5 is removed from the pin hole 10 by the Wound-up auxiliary Wire via the chain 14, and the connecting means 9 is opened up. Thus, the bottom reception chains are disconnected one from the other and the lower ends of the main chains 3 are freed. Then, the main chains 3, the auxiliary chain 14 and the bottom-reception chains 8 are lifted out of the furnace together with the suspension member 1, leaving behind only the scrap block on the furnace floor and completing the insertion operation.

Since the apparatus of the present invention has such structural features as described hereinabove, the insertion operation is carried out in a safer and easier way in comparison to the existing wire ropes and other existing methods. This cuts down the work time (e.g. one relatively unskilled worker can do the whole operation) involved in placing the lifted scrap block into the electrical furnace.

Further, since all of the chains and connecting elements are recovered and can be used repeatedly over a long period of time, the present apparatus has been proved markedly economical.

What is claimed is: 1. A recoverable scrap block insertion device compu'sing:

a plurality of main chains (3); a horizontally extending suspension member (1), said suspension member (1) supporting said main chains (3) with said main chains (3) spaced from each other in the horizontal direction along said suspension member (1);

means (2) for supporting said suspension member (1);

a plurality of bottom reception chains (8) connected to said main chains (3);

a plurality of coupling devices (9) coupling respective pairs of said plurality of bottom reception chains (8) together to retain a scrap block, each of said coupling devices (9) including:

a first coupling member (11) having a hole (10) therein and connected to one of said bottom reception chains (8);

a second coupling member (12) having a hole (10) therein and connected to another of said bottom reception chains (8) and mating with said first coupling member (11) with said holes (10) in alignment; and

a pin member (5) engaging said holes (10) of said coupling members (10, 12) and maintaining said coupling members (10, 12) in their mated condition;

a plurality of auxiliary chains (14), each coupled at one end to a respective one of said pin members (5), said auxiliary chains (14) being guided and located spaced from each other at the other ends thereof by said suspension member (1);

means coupling said other ends of said auxiliary chains (14) together; and

tensioning means including an auxiliary wire (13) coupled to said other ends of said auxiliary chains (14) and movable in a substantially vertical direction for selectively applying tension to said auxiliary chains (14) to remove said pins (5) from engagement with said holes (10) of said coupling members (11 and 12), to thereby uncouple said botton reception chains (8) and release said scrap block.

2. A recoverable scrap block insertion device according to claim 1 wherein said suspension member (1) is a horizontally extending annular member.

3. A recoverable scrap block insertion device according to claim 1 wherein said tensioning means lifts said other ends of said auxiliary chains (14).

4. A recoverable scrap block insertion device according to claim 3 wherein said tensioning means includes means raising for lifting lifts said auxiliary chain vertically relative to said suspension member (1).

5. A recoverable scrap block insertion device according to claim 4 wherein said tensioning means comprises pulley means (16, 17) coupling said auxiliary wire (13) to said suspension member (1).

6. A recoverable scrap block insertion device according to claim 1 wherein said first coupling member (11) is a female member and said second coupling member (12) is a male member mating with said female member.

7. A recoverable scrap block insertion device according to claim 1 wherein said tension is applied to said auxiliary chain (14) when tension on the main chains (3) is released.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 846,383 3/1907 Arden 29475 672,786 5/1952 Scrutton Ltd. 29467.5

FOREIGN PATENTS 197,439 7/1967 U.S.S.R. 29474 669,641 4/1952 Great Britain 294-81 RICHARD E. AEGERTER, Primary Examiner D. D. WATTS, Assistant Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 294-78 

